Traditional methods for constructing residential and commercial buildings remain, for the most part, unchanged. During construction of a building, it is common to frame walls using light gauge steel framing components. Most metal frame walls are built on-site by skilled carpenters and installation involves a labor-intensive process. For rough framing projects in the United States, it is common for labor costs to exceed three times the material cost. In addition, labor costs may increase with a reduction in workforce availability.
In a standard configuration, frame assemblies such as metal frame walls include “tracks” and “studs” (or “joists”) which may be fastened together to form a wall frame. In general, a pair of tracks may be horizontally aligned in parallel along opposite ends of the wall, and studs may be positioned vertically between the tracks, typically at regular intervals (e.g., 16-inches on center). Each of the studs may then be manually secured to the tracks by engaging fasteners through the flanges of the tracks and the stud. Other joining methods may be used, such as welding and riveting. This process generally forms the supporting structure of the wall frame.
Connecting the studs with the tracks at the job site or during manufacturing presents various technical challenges. For example, it is generally critical to fasten the studs to the tracks using a fastening process that is capable of limiting lateral movement of the studs relative to the corresponding tracks so as to protect the integrity of the wall during building movement caused by expansion and contraction, wind forces, and seismic events. In addition, the fastening process must be cost and labor efficient. In some cases, this fastening process may be achieved using specialized tracks such as a deflection track that contains vertical slots spaced at regular intervals (e.g. one-inch on center). In this case, the studs may be secured to the deflection track by fastening screws through the closest slot of the deflection track and into the flange of the stud. Other specialized tracks may include cross-sectional modifications to the track profile so that the studs can be engaged along predetermined positions of the track. However, investment in such specialized tracks may complicate the overall framing process and/or lead to excess cost. On the other hand, studs and tracks widely available in the marketplace and/or commonly deployed for installation are shipped in large bundles of “raw” material and have standard dimensions and shape configurations (e.g., U-shaped or C-shaped); yet, a cost-efficient and mechanically sound fastening process for these widely available components is lacking. Moreover, such conventional tracks and studs lack sufficient features for accommodating the deployment of building utilities such as electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and the like.
It is with these observations in mind, among others, that various aspects of the present disclosure were conceived and developed.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding elements among the view of the drawings. The headings used in the figures do not limit the scope of the claims.